


Another Day, Another Story

by misura



Category: Tour of the Merrimack - R. M. Meluch
Genre: Alternate Timelines, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-16
Updated: 2011-12-16
Packaged: 2017-10-27 22:16:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/300635
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misura/pseuds/misura
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wherein Augustus is right about the solidity of history and not particularly smug about it. (set in the Myriad timeline)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Another Day, Another Story

**Author's Note:**

  * For [yunitsa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/yunitsa/gifts).



> as per the prompt, this story is set in the Myriad timeline and so gleefully ignores any and all events taking place after the Mack changed history

No sound, not from the explosion. Possibly someone saw, gasped. Was heard by Farragut who opened his eyes, expected ... nothing.

Saw what remained of the Arran messenger ship.

Breathed.

Heard Augustus cough. Needed two seconds to realize that cough was a tired man's laughter, and another two to remember his own thoughts, to remember thinking: _here's to Augustus laughing_.

Six seconds, and Farragut realized _later_ did no longer equal _never_.

Augustus unplugged and got up. Fainted. Failed to hit the deck, because Farragut stood nearby, and was not quite sure enough that he was faking it to let him fall.

 

Don Jose Maria de Cordillera was a practical man. He might be disappointed that in the end, neither theory on the possible effects of traveling back in time and changing history had been put to a true test, but he was content to accept the present for what it was.

What it was, Farragut thought, was nothing to write home about - except, of course, that it very much _was_ , because the lives of the people of three planets were at stake, and for all that he considered her the finest ship in the universe, by herself, the _Mack_ wasn't going to be able to save them.

There was, of course, also the small matter of Donner to deal with. Or rather: the messenger ship Donner had ordered sent to Origin, which Farragut had ordered blown up.

Few men would take well to someone ordering one of their ships blown up, and Farragut did not think Donner was one of them. An annoyed Donner would not make Farragut's life impossible, but a pleased and if not eager, then at least willing, to please Donner might make it a considerable deal easier.

"You could tell him the simple truth, young captain." Jose Maria had temporarily regained possession of his guitar, Augustus claiming to have lost his taste for music, or at least for the making of it.

"That it exploded all by itself?" Farragut shook his head. " _I_ still find that hard to believe, and I was right there when it happened. I can't imagine him buying that one."

Farragut had been given a choice: find out what had happened to the messenger, or find ways to buy the Myriad a little bit of extra time. Time for Farragut's own message to reach the U.S. forces. Time for those U.S. forces to make their way here.

The choice had not been a hard one to make.

"Not by itself, I think," said Jose Maria.

Augustus finally roused himself. "God?" His tone implied he did not mean the suggestion to be taken seriously.

Jose Maria shrugged, almost smiled. "Assuming that for the messenger to have successfully reached Origin would have meant for the universe as we know it to cease existing, who can say there is not some form of a higher power whose task it is to prevent such things from happening? To save us from ourselves?"

"From ourselves, but not from the Hive?"

Speaking for himself, Farragut knew he would rather face another level 6 swarm than another unarmed messenger, headed for a _kzachin_ , with the potential to permanently alter history.

"If you have another explanation, I would be happy to hear it." Jose Maria spoke mildly and, Farragut judged, with complete sincerity.

Augustus scowled. "There's not enough information. Possibly a technical malfunction."

Ships did not explode due to technical malfunctions. Not U.S. ships, at any rate, and not Roman ships either, Farragut rather thought. Not even LEN ships, and they were generally built by whomever had put in the lowest bid to build them.

Donner's people might be inept, but Farragut doubted their ineptness would extend quite so far.

If his options were human error or divine intervention, Farragut knew which to pick.

 _Thank you._

 

They'd all known about the captain having a thing for Hamster, of course - not much of a secret there, even if there were odds to be had on whether or not anything would ever come of it, for those interested in getting chewed out by Colonel Steele.

Kerry hadn't been fool enough to waste her money. Any idiot could see Captain Farragut was one of those men to whom honor meant a whole lot more than a bit of fun between the sheets.

Of course, she'd also thought that about TR, and look how _that_ had turned out.

"They look nothing alike at all," said Reg.

Kerry loved Reg, she really did, but when it came to understanding men - well. Lack of experience showed, even if maybe it was more that Kerry Blue had a _lot_ of experience with what men wanted, than that Reg Monroe had a shortage of it.

"Hell, they're not even the same _gender_."

"Love is blind." Darb, of course. Dumb as a brick, even if Kerry supposed he was basically OK.

"Yeah, right. Guess that's why our Kerry's been walking into walls all day long."

Darb looked at her like she'd sprouted a second head. "You're in love? Who with?"

Not so dumb, after all, apparently. Just her luck. Reg and her big mouth. "Can't say he's not impressive. Easy to pick out in a crowd."

" _Who?_ "

Kerry rolled her eyes. "Augustus, you idiot."

"You're in love with _Augustus_?"

On second thought: completely dumb. "Not me, Darb. Captain Farragut. Hear they kissed and then he fainted and the captain carried him back to his cabin." It all sounded terribly romantic, Kerry thought. So probably completely made up. Still, a good story was a good story. Better than some muck about how poor Donner (whom people had finally stopped refering to as her 'boyfriend') had almost erased history, accidentally on purpose or something.

Carly had tried explaining that one, but Kerry had barely understood two words of it. Suddenly wanting to press your lips to someone else's, now - _that_ made sense to Kerry. Happened all the time.

"People faint when kissing?" Darb clearly didn't get it. Should have just waited until it was her and Reg. Girls together, and all that.

"Just forget it."

He wouldn't, of course, but that was men for you.

 

TR Steele heard the rumors. Didn't comment on them within anyone's hearing.

Was secretly relieved they weren't about him and Kerry, and ashamed of himself for it.

Imagined Augustus's face when he heard about the cause of the fainting, and felt better.

Roman bastard deserved it.

 

Said Farragut: "I believe you owe me an explanation."

Augustus's quarters had been refurnished. Looked like a proper cabin, albeit a very Roman one. "Can't imagine why." Augustus hadn't bothered to get out of his hammock when Farragut had entered, bearing coffee and an expression only a few inches short of being grim.

Farragut poured the coffee. Put down one cup just out of Augustus's reach.

"You thought me and Don Cordillera had been right after all," said Farragut.

Augustus scowled. "There was data I hadn't had access to before. As simple as that. Don't flatter yourself. Anyone can get in a lucky guess every now and then."

Farragut sipped his coffee. Augustus reached for his coffee, fell short. Muttered something unflattering regarding Farragut's ancestors and got out of his hammock.

"What do you want?"

"I think that's a question I should be asking of you," said Farragut. "You thought we - all this here, would stop existing. You acted, based on that idea. The universe is still here, and you're here, and I'm here."

"A remarkable statement of the obvious. Next, you'll tell me the LEN are a bunch of bumbling idiots."

"You made a promise," said Farragut, blue eyes stern. "Keep it."

Augustus sighed. "Your definition of a promise is rather a loose one. Still, if it gets rid of you, why not? It's human instinct to crave closeness when facing imminent death. I'm human. You were close. Given the limited amount of time left, actually fucking your brains out didn't seem an option. Of course, that would be assuming you possess any."

Farragut couldn't remember the last time he'd blushed. Didn't particularly want to remember this time, either. He'd asked for honesty. Augustus had provided it. Unexpected, but he could hardly complain about it.

There were other things Farragut could barely remember. "And now?" Or, in fact, they were things he could remember entirely too well. It was only the knowledge of how very long ago they had happened that made him feel as if he should have trouble remembering them. That, and the certainty that they were things better left unremembered.

No point in wishing for rain when you're in the middle of a desert.

"Too much work," said Augustus, dismissively. "The eventual pay out would hardly be worth it."

Insults, at least, were familiar. Their contents might be unusual, but the tone was one Farragut recognized and very nearly welcomed. This was Augustus.

"That's your conclusion as a patterner?" Captain John Farragut was not a cat. Curiosity wouldn't kill him, even if Augustus might, one day. Not today, though, and not now.

"No data," said Augustus, as if explaining something for the tenth time to a very slow child. "You want to give me some, fine, take off your clothes and we'll see. Otherwise, get out and let me sleep."

 

The next day, the story was all over the _Merrimack_.

How Augustus had walked up to Captain Farragut and had kissed him, just like that, and had then carried him off to his cabin, the captain in a dead faint.

(Wouldn't have made it past TR Steele, except that Farragut had warned him aforehand that something of the kind might happen, and so Steele had stepped aside, however unwillingly.)


End file.
